HC Deb 28 February 1980 vol 979 cc709-10W
Sir Brandon Rhys Williams

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will publish figures comparing the net weekly incomes of single non-householder pensioners, single householder pensioners and pensioner married couples, both supplementary pensioners and pensioners with additional annual incomes of £100, £200, £300, £400 and £500, assuming: tax allowances as at present and that single person's tax allowance and married person's tax allowances were reduced to £700 for a single person and £1,400 for a married couple and that householders were able to claim a housing credit of £4 a week.

Mrs. Chalker

I regret that such information could be provided only at disproportionate expense.

Mr. Marlow

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how much better off each week is the married man on average earnings with one child, two, three or four children as against a similar man on earnings-related unemployment pay or supplementary benefit, the figures to be tabulated as they stand, also corrected according to the total of the cost of sustenance and getting to work, and the cost of school transport and meals as estimated after passage of the Education (No. 2) Bill.

Mrs. Chalker

I regret that it is not possible to provide information which will enable a comparison to be made between the current situation for a family man with average earnings and his position after the passage of the Education (No. 2) Bill. Under the provisions of this Bill local authorities will have discretion

ployed by his Department at the beginning of each of the last four years.

Mr. Patrick Jenkin

The number and cost of information officer group staff in the Department on these dates is shown in the table below. The information officer group, in addition to press and public relations officers, includes information specialists in paid publicity.

whether or not, and how much, to charge for both school transport and school meals. It is not therefore possible to predict what average charges will be.

If my hon. Friend wishes to have information on how much better off these family men with average earnings are than similar men on earnings-related unemployment benefit or supplementary benefit, I can let him have some details. But we have no information about average school transport costs at present incurred in these situations.